Record Reviews

9.2

The StabsDead Wood

Over the past few weeks, while enduring raving on my behalf about the brilliance of this record, those around me that are unfamiliar with the band have questioned what The Stabs actually sound like. As often is the case with music I particularly like, I have struggled to encapsulate my feelings, instead responding by mumbling words like 'punk' and 'noisy'. Now, with the the luxury of not being on the spot, I have had the time to come with a slightly more suitable summary of their music.

The Stabs sound like a confident jerk. Swaggering and loud, with a brash sense of self-confidence and disregard for the sensible people that dull their everyday life. This is underpinned by a sense of self-loathing and uncertainty. Worthlessness, abandonment and the mundaneness of existence are explored from countless perspectives, over analysed and dissected. The group's heavy use of feedback and distortion, previously utilised as a way to distance themselves from emotions, has been slightly toned down over time, with the group replacing this masking agent with their superiority/self-doubt paradox.

Dead Wood is much more of a documented entry of the group's current progress, than an album the trio entered a studio to record. Those that have seen the band perform over the past few years will recognise these songs and possibly even have seen them develop from rough sketches into their current state. This completely unforced snapshot style of recording their material perfectly compliments the band's rough sound. There is no extra shine here. No forced catchiness and no attempt to fit into a fixed style or genre. This is just a band being a band, in all it's messy glory. A beautiful thing indeed.

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